halversen



H. N. HALVERSEN.

SORTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-13. I919.

Patented Apr. 19, 1921.,

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

INVENTOR WITNESS:

H. N. HALVERSEN;

SORTING MACHINE. APPLICATION 111150 050113, 1919.

Patented Apr. 19, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

H. N. HALVERSEN.

SORTING MA-CHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-13,1919- 1,375,387.

Patented Apr. 19, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESS A TTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HANS N. HALVERSEN, OF VINELANI), NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO KIMBLE GLASS COMPANY, OF CHIGAGO, ILLTNOZS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

SORTING-MACHINE.

Application filed December 13, 1919.

T all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, IIANS N. HALvERsnN,

V a citizen of the United States, residing at Vineland, in the county of Cumberland and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sortmg- Machines, of which the following is a spoolfication.

My invention relates to automatic sorting, classifying, grading, or weighing machlnes, which test or weigh a series of bodies individually and sort or grade them according to their weights. The appliance is susceptible of a Variety of commercial and economical uses, but it may be employed to particular advantage in the sorting or gradof glass tubes, which, although of substantially the same length, may vary I slightly in'weight sufiicient to warrant their sorting according to weight. Such tubes are used for the production of various articles, for instance, glass vials, produced automatically in machines designed for that purpose which heat sections of the tubes preliminary to other forming operations carried out by the machines. These tubes necessarily vary slightly in thickness and unless properly graded as to weight, which, of course, corresponds to thickness, they will not be heated properly in the forming machine or vial-making appliance specified because if such machines are adjusted for a degree and period of heat application for one thickness or weight of tube such adjustment would not be correct for tubes of I somewhat different weight or thickness. For this and possibly other reasons prelimlnary or initial grading or sorting of the tubes is required and this is effectively, accurately, and efiiciently accomplished in machines emhodying this invention, the main aim or purpose of which is to produce a simple appliance of this kind which will perform its work satisfactorily, requiring but little attention on the part of the oper-' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 19, 1921.

Serial No. 344,616.

desirable objects are attained, I have illus trated a preferred and desirable embodiment of the invention in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and throughout the various views of which like reference characters refer to the same parts.

In these drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the maand the front wall of the supply magazine removed;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the structure with the magazine front wall in place;

Fig. 3 is a partial horizontal section on an enlarged scale on line 3 3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary detail elevation of the upper portion of the weighing mechanism and adjacent parts; and

Fig. 5 is a broken vertical section on an enlarged scale on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Referring to these drawings it will be seen that the machine includes a main inclined frame or standard 18 with a suitable base 19 resting on the floor and provided at the top with a magazine 21 adjustably supported on two forwardlyprojecting stationary rods 20 and 38 and capable of expansion and contraction, adapted to hold the supply of glass tubes 22 tobe tested or weighed. Such magazine has the usual pairs of side (front and rear) and divided end-walls 23 and 2 1, and an inclined portion 25 of its floor or bottom-wall is fixed and stationary although it may be, if desired, adjusted on the supporting-rod 20 on which it is mounted. At its center the bottom of the magazine is fitted with a. vertical chute or upright passage formed by two opposed, spaced, confining walls 26 and 27 of which the latter extends below the former terminating in a pair of substantially-horizontal, lateral, supporting feet or fingers 28, 28, on which the lowermost tube in the chute or vertical passage is adapted to rest. The wall 26 forms part of a bracket 29 adjustably secured in place by a bolt or screw and slot connection 30 on the lower portion of element 25, such bracket having an inclined part 31 constituting a connecting portion of the bottom wall of the magazine leading to the chute, the latter being of a width to accommodate one vertical row only of the tubes. By varying '60 chine with certain of the parts broken away the position of member 29 the width of the discharge chute may be easily modified to accommodate tubes of different diameters. The remainder of the magazine floor is composed of an oscillatory member 32 hinged on the rod 33 and has a curved end portion 3 l'aeting to keep the corresponding side of the chute closed during the rocking of the plate, such part 34 being located directly above the wall 27. The member 32 constitutes an agitator to prevent the tubes from becoming arched or blocked over the chute with resulting non-feeding and it is oscillated or rocked up and down by an antifriction roller 35 on an arm 36 constituting an extension of a crank-arm 37 fixed on a shaft 38 revoluble in suitable hearings on the frame or standard.

From an understanding of this construction it will be readily perceived that the magazine may be adjusted in size to accommodate the tubes of different lengths and diameters by adjusting the front and rear walls 23, 23, lengthwise the supportin rods 20 and 33 and by also changing the position of the bracket 29 and its chutewall 26. i

As is clearly shown in 1, theappliance is provided with four scale-beams or weighing-devices 10, ll, 42, and 43, arranged in an inclined series, and, inasmuch as these are alike, except for the adjustment of their weights, a description of one of these weighing devices will suflice for all.

A suitably-shaped bracket 44 is fastened to and extends forwardly from the main standard 18 and has two alined seats 45, 45, for the knife-edge portions of the ful crum shaft 46 of a scale-beam l7 fitted at end with a threaded rod 48 adjustably supporting a threaded weight 49. On the opposite side of the fulcrum the scale-beam has a V-shaped seat or saddle 50 adapted to receive one of the tubes 22 to be weighed or tested. In. addition the bracket is provided with a horizontal extension 51 above the scale-beam carrying tvo vertically-adjustablestop-pins or screws 52' and 53 adapted by coil'peration with bosses 54 and 55 on the beam on opposite sides of its fulcrum to limit the swinging or rocking of the beam in opposite directions.

The weights 49 of the several scales are so adjusted on their screw-threaded rods 48 that it takes a heavier tube to overbalance the weight of the upper pair of scales 40 than of the next lower pair of scales 41 and a heavier weight to overbalance such latter pair of scales ll than the next pair 42 and so on down the series, the lowermost pair of scales being set for the lightest weight.

At the lower portion ofthe machine a stationary tube seat or saddle 56 is mounted on a fixed upright support 57 secured to the base of the appliance.

The conveyer for shifting or carrying the tubes one by one from the supply-magazine to the upper scale-beam and from the latter down to the other scale-beams in succession comprises two side-bars 58, 59, connected rigidly by straps 60 to a block 61 rockingly mounted at 62 on the cranlearm 37. in somewhat similar manner the lower ends of these conveyer bars are rockingly connected at 63 by one or more members 64 rigidly secured to the bars to a crank-arm 65 fixed to a shaft 66, similar to the shaft 38, revoluble in suitable bearings. Shaft 66 by means of reduction gearing 67 is rotated by an electric motor 68 desirably incased, as shown in Fig. 1.

It will be perceived, therefore, that since the conveyer is mounted on and actuated by the two crank-arms 37 and 65 of equal lengths and in the same relative angular position, it has a parallel-motion or orbital movement which will be readily under stood. The direction of travel of this conveyer is indicated by the direction of rotation of shaft 38 by an arrow as illustrated in Fig. 1.

The two united conveyor bars, as is illus trated, are disposed on opposite sides of or straddle the series or group of scale-beams, and at their top ends are notched in alinement to provide a seat 69 adapted, during the travel of the conveyer to remove the lowermost tube 22 in the magazine-chute sidewise from its supporting fingers or lugs 28 and carry it down and deposit it in the seat or cradle 50 of the uppermost scalebeam 40. These spaced conveyor-bars are also supplied with four sets or groups of inner and outer tube-seats 70, 72.. 74-, 76, and 71, 73, 75, 77, respectively. In each instance the inner seat, 72 for example, is adapted to remove the tube from the saddle or cradle 50 of the scalebeam 4L1, provided the tube was not of sullicient weight to overbalance the weight of the scale-lieam, and carry it down and depositit in the seat 50 of the next lower .scalebeam 42. The outer seats 71, 73, 75, and 77 of the conveyer are designed to transfer the tubes from the respective scale beams to the several graded compartments hereinafter described, provided, however, that such tubes have overbalanced the scale-beams. At their lower ends these conveyer-lmrs have an additional seal 78 designed to remove any tube which may be deposited in the stationary saddle 56 and deliver it to the lowermost of the classification compartments referred to. a

The appliance includes five, superposed magazines or compartments 79, 80, S1, 82, and 83,'arranged one above/the other in inclined relation and adapted to receive the sorted or classified tubes, the heaviest ones being delivered into the upper compartment 7 9 and the lightest ones into the lower compartment 83, those of the other maga- 'i of them while the base of each compartment is composed of a casting mounted in any approved manner, as by a bracket portion 86, on the main standard or frame. Each of such castings includes two spaced portions 86 and 87 with upwardly curved ends 88 and connected together by an intermediate web 89, and at their ends adjacent to the scale-beams by an inte ral cross-bar 90 having a top inclined face, as shown in Fig. 5, sloping toward the compartment.

Each of these five classificationmagazines or chambers has an end-wall 91 adapted to prevent the tubes from rolling out of the compartment, and, inasmuch as the machine by adjustment of its parts is capable of grading or sorting tubes of substantially different dimensions and weights, and, since these end walls lequireadjustment in correspondence with the sizes of the tubes being handled, it is desirable that all of these end-walls of the five compartments shall be adjusted equally and simultaneously and accordingly mechanism has been provided to fulfil that purpose.

To the accomplishment of this object all of the wall members 91 are, by means of their individual extensions or brackets 92, fixedly mounted on' an inclined supporting and connecting bar 93 having two projec tions 9 1 and 95 at its upper and lower portions. The part 94 is pivoted at 96 to a link 97 fulcrumed 011 the main-frame at 98'and in similar manner the part 95 is pivoted at 99 to a link 100 pivoted on the main-frame at 101. The two links have arms 102 and 103 operatively associated together by a connecting-link 104. A web or horizontal plate portion 105 of themainframe or standard is provided with a threaded hole equipped with an adjustingscrew 106 which has a threaded part 107 extended through a threaded hole in a member 108 fulcrumed at 109 to the pivot-pin 110 between the parts 102 and 104. Since the supporting fulcrumpins 98 and 101 are fixed in position it will be clear that the turning of screw 106 will adjustably eleva-te or lower all of the end-walls 91 simultaneously and uniformly.

Each of these end-walls 91 along its lower edge is equipped with an outstanding flange or foot 110 and beneath this is a V-shaped seat 111 on a lever 112 fulcrumed at 118 between the two parts 86 and 87 of the base of the classification-magazine. The portion of the lever on the side of the fulcrum opposite the seat 111 is in the form of a weight 114 which normally presses the seat All of these classifi 111 upwardly toward the foot 110, such upward swinging being limited by an extension 115 on the lever adapted to engage the bottom face of the stationary cross bar 90.

The operation of this improved appliance occurs practically as follows:

Assume that the supply-magazine 21 has been provided with a number of tubes to be sorted or classified according to weight and of substantially the same length and diameter, and that the passage between the opposed walls 26 and 27 at the base of the magazine contains a single vertical row of such horizontal tubes resting on one another with the lowermost one supported on the pair of lugs or fingers 28, and assuming furthermore, that the conveyer is traveling in the direction determined by the direction of revolution of shaft 38, as indicated in Fig. 1, the seat 69 at the upper end of the conveyer during its travel will remove the lowermost tube sidewise from the supports 28 and during its downward travel will deposit it in the scale-pan or saddle 50 of the uppermost pair of scales 10. If the tube is insufficient in weight to overbalance the scale-beam, at practically the same moment that the conveyer-seat 69 removes the next tube from the supports 28, such first scalebeam tube will be lifted from the seat of scale-beam 40 by the inner-seat 70 of the conveyer and at the same time that the tube in the seat 69 is being carried to the pair of scales lO, the other or first tube will be carried down and deposited in the scale-pan or saddle 50 of the next lower pair of scales 41. In this manner the tube will be transported downwardly from one scale-beam to the next, assuming that it does not overbalance any of them, and will be finally deposited on the stationary support 56 from which it will be removed by the conveyerseat 7 8 and delivered to the lowermost classification compartment or magazine 83. In case the tube overbalances any one of the scale-beams, instead of the conveyer-seat 7 1, for example, carrying it down to the next scale-beam, the outer seat 7 5 of the conveyer will lift it from the saddle of the overbalanced scale-beam and deliver it to the corresponding classificationmagazine 81. Thus the conveyer is ordinarily transporting a plurality of these tubes either from one scale beam to the next or from the scalebeam, to the corresponding classificationmagazine. It should be noted that the conveyer removes the tube from the scale-beam seat in a somewhat upwardly direction and deposits or delivers it in the seat of the next scale-beam or at the entrance of the classification-magazine in a somewhat downwardly direction. It will be observed that each inne'r' seat of the conveyer, 72 for instance, during its cycle of travel, intersects the position of the two scale-beam seats with which it cooperates while the latter are in their elevated positions, or, stated difierently, when the scale-beams arenot overbalanced, and hence, such conveyer seat may lift the tube from the upper scale-beam seat and deposit it in a downward direction in the seat of the next lower scale-beam. It will also be observed that the outer conveyerseat 73, for example, during its orbital movement, intersects the position of the corresponding scale-beam seat when the latter is in its lowermost or overbalanced position and also'intersects the position of the seat or support 90 of the corresponding classification magazine. Therefore, if any scalebeam is not overbalanced by the tube resting on it, the tube will be picked up by the inner seat .of the conveyer and carried down to the next scale-beam, whereas, if the scale-beam is overbalanced by the tube, the latter will be picked up by the outer seat of the conveyer and transported to the corresponding distribution-magazine. V V

VVhenever'any tube is delivered or carried to one of the distribution or classification magazines, it is deposited on the support 90, the front vertical edge 116 of the conveyer immediately preceding such action pushing inwardly the tube which previously occupied that position, such latter tube being thus forced between the seat 111 and the foot 110, displacing another tube which occupied that position, and pushing it into the magazine. The yielding holding means of the tube between the parts 110 and 111 by the action of weight 11 1 prevents the supply of tubes in the magazine from rolling back out beneath the end-wall 91, such mechanism acting as a sort of lock or check for this purpose, and

when a tube is depositedon the member 90 the preceding tube is forced into an advanced position as indicated. l

. During each rotation of the crank 37, the

roller 35 causes the member 32 to rise and fall, thus stirring up or agitating the tubes in the supply-magazine 21 and facilitating their proper distribution and desired single vertical row arrangement in the deliverychute.

The tubes in each of the classification or distribution magazines will all be of approximately the same weight, but the tubes in any one magazine will differ in weight from those of any other magazine, as will be readily understood, and by the employment of the graduated weighing and distributing mechanism described, the tubes will be sorted or graded according to weight and delivered to these magazines, the heaviest tubes being found in the upper magazine 7 9 and the lightest tubes in the lowest magazine 83.

V In case tubes of diiferent lengths. or of difierent diameters are to be sorted with this functions of the apparatus in the manner stated, particularly the transfer of the tubes from scale-beam to scale-beam and to the ma azines.

IIaving thus described one particular successful embodiment of the invention, it is not to be understood that the latter is limited and restricted to the precise and exact details of construction presented, because these may be varied within comparatively wide limits without departure from the substance and essence of the invention and without the sacrifice of any of its substantial benefits and advantages. In other words, this embodiment of the invention is illustrated and described by way of example only, it being understood that the invention is susceptible of a variety of embodiments all incorporating the main and underlying features of construction and the mode of operation.

I claim:

1. In a sorting appliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of scales arranged in an inclined series in the same vertical plane adjusted for different weights, a plurality of classificationcompartments arranged in an inclined series in the same vertical plane, and conveying means to individually convey the bodies to be sorted'to the scales in succession and to deliver such bodies to the classification compartments corresponding to the scales which they overbalance, substantially as described.

2. In a sorting-appliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of series and adjustedfor different weights, a

ranged in an inclined series, and conveying means to individually carry the bodies to be sorted according to weight to and deposit,

them in a downward direction on the scalebeams in succession and to deliver such bodies to the classificationcompartments corresponding to the scale-beams which they overbalance, substantially as described.

4; In a sorting appliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of scale-beams arranged in an inclined series and adjusted for different weights, a supplymagazine, a plurality of classification-compartments positioned with their entrances in inclined relation, and. conveying means to individually carry bodies from the supplymagazine to the scale beams in succession and to deliver such bodies to the classification-compartments corresponding to the scale-beams which they overbalance, substantially as described. 7

5. In a sortingappliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of scales adjusted for different weights, a plurality of classification-compartments, and a conveyer straddling said scales and adapted to individually carry bodies to the scales in succession and to deliver such bodies to the classification-compartments corresponding to the scales which they overbalance, substantially as described.

6. In a-sorting appliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of scales adjusted for different weights, a plurality of classification-compartments, a pair of rotary shafts, means to revolve said shafts, crank-arms on said shafts, and a conveyer mounted on said crank-arms and adapted to individually transfer bodies to the scales in succession and to deliver such bodies to the classificationcompartments corresponding to the scales which they overbalance, substantially as described.

7. In a sorting appliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of scale-beams arranged in an inclined series and adjusted for different weights, a supply-magazine,'a plurality of classificationcompartments arranged with their entrances in inclined relation, a pair of shafts, means to revolve one of said shafts, crank-arms on said shafts, and an inclined conveyer mounted on said crank-arms adapted to individually transfer bodies from the supply-maga- V zine to the scale-beams in succession and a plurality of classification-compartments, a conveyer cooperating with said scale-beams and compartments having two seats for each scale-beam, and means to operate said conveyer in a path to bring one of its seats of each set of two into substantial register with the scale-beam cradles of two successive scale-beams when the latter are not overbalanced by bodies in their cradles, and to bring the other conveyer seat of the set of two into register with the cradle of one of said scale-beams when the latter is overbalanced by the body and then into register with the entrance portion of the corresponding classification compartment, substantially as described.

9. In a sorting appliance of the character described, the combination of a plurality of scale-beams, each provided with a cradle to accommodate a body to be weighed, adjusted to be overbalanced by bodies of different weights, a plurality of classification-compartments, a conveyer cooperating with said scale-beams and compartments having two seats for each scale-beam, and a parallelmotion mounting for said conveyer to operate the latter in a path to bring one of its seats of each set of two into substantial register with two successive scale-beam cradles when the latter are not overbalanced by bodies in their cradles and to bring the other conveyer seat of each set of two successively into register with the cradle of one of said scale-beams when the latter is overbalanced by the body therein and into register with the entrance portion of the corresponding classification-compartment, substantially as described.

10. In a sorting a pliance of the character described, the com ination of. a plurality of scale-beams arranged in an inclined series and adjusted to be overbalanced by bodies of different weights, each scale-beam being provided with a cradle to accommodate the body to be weighed, a plurality of classification-compartments arranged with their entrances in inclined relation, an inclined conveyer straddling and cooperating with said scale-beams and compartments having two seats for each scale-beam, and a parallel motion mounting for said conveyer to operate the latter in a path to bring one of its seats of each set of two into substant'ial register with two successive scalebeam cradles when the latter are not overbalanced by bodies in their cradles and to bring the other conveyer seat of each set of two successively into register with the cradle of one of said scale-beams when the latter is overbalanced by the body therein and into register with the entrance portion of the corresponding classification-compartment, substantially as described.

11. In a construction of the character described, the combination of a pair of scalebeams, and a conveying mechanism constructed to lift a body from the cradle of one scale-beam and deposit it in a downward direction in the cradle of the other scale-beam, substantially as described.

12. In a construction of the character described, the combinationot a scale-beam, a

classification-compartment, and a conveying mechanism constructed to lift a body from the cradle of the scale-beam and to deposit it in a downward direction at the entrance of said compartment, substantially as described. V

HANS N. HALVERSEN. 

